If you’ve ever argued with someone to the brutal end about virtually any topic, you will have discovered that many “disagreements” are not truly conceptual, but semantic. What this means for normal life is that before we simply argue a point, we have to be sure that we are understanding correctly.

Sometimes people use words that mean one thing to them, but something else to you. You argue round and round to find out in the end you didn’t really disagree on the subject, but only on the words being used.

This is actually a pretty big problem. So what’s the solution?

The easiest way to avoid purely semantic arguments is to clearly define the terms we are using.

This is one of the breakthroughs of CrossFit. Fitness has been defined, and our definition of Work Capacity Across Broad Time and Modal Domains is still yet to be convincingly challenged.

What this means is that now, when we are discussing whether someone is “fit” or not, we are actually saying something meaningful. We are discussing whether that person is capable of a whole lot of different things.

With this definition, there is really no such thing as a “fitness model.” There can only be a “fitness example.” The only way to model fitness is by participating in fitness tasks. Fitness is not a look.

With all that being said it, is time for another definition.

As an affiliate owner I am often introduced to people who have “tried CrossFit.” Or even people who “do CrossFit,” at Barnes & Noble or wherever the f*&k they go, and have some sort of opinion about it.

But what does “doing” or “trying” CrossFit actually mean?

Just because you did an interval workout with some air squats or pull-ups in it does not mean you’ve done CrossFit any more than tossing the baseball out back with your kid means you’ve played baseball.

Tossing a baseball is just one of the many things a baseball player does just as an interval workout is one of the many things a CrossFitter does.

So what’s the bottom line? I would say, that in order to honestly say someone has tried/done CrossFit, they would have to have participated in a thoughtfully crafted, well-rounded, inclusive GPP CrossFit program (like CFBB/CFSL) at a minimum participation rate of 3x’s per week for at 6-8 weeks in order to make that claim.

Until then, I really don’t want to hear your opinion on CrossFit anymore than I want to hear about your baseball career.